"Reviving a loved one back to reality," I mumble to myself as I feel the simple phrase hitting me hard inside my chest. "How ironic."
Looking back, the reason that I have come this far is to find my deceased parents and bring them back to life, just like the graybeard had told me. The only information that I have from that deity is the Book of Legend. Markus lent me that novel, which has all the data of this uncharted world. If I can improve my language proficiency, I could unlock more details, leaving me closer to my goal.
However, my story could have been different if I had grown up inside this realm-a world where magic exists. Unlike Earth from my previous dimension, everything you believe will come true here. Everything that a man has wished for can become possible using the arcane-a mysterious force that drives this world into peril.
"I understand now," I utter while standing on my feet, properly facing the grotesque Lich.
"Finally, you damn sprite. You have wisely chosen death!"
The Lich commands his army to attack me, with him standing still behind. He never intended to aim at the immobilised force of my friends. That Lich only wants my soul alone.
It almost feels like these dead souls got trapped inside his magic and used as pawns for his benefit.
"Any tips to destroy these skeletons and zombies?" I point my hands parallel to me as I identify the creature walking closer in my direction.
"Zombies?"the two of them asked, unaware of the term that I have spouted. "Oh, you mean the undead?"
Despite having no energy to move his limbs, he explains to me the information that he knows, equipping me with the knowledge to fight these vile creatures.
"First, you need a spell that can decapitate them with a spell that can tear them apart, or you won't entirely kill them. Your arrows and water spheres should be enough to kill them. These undead creatures can still be alive even by cutting their chest and limbs. The only way to stop them is by finishing these undead creatures completely."
"Why does it have to be the undead!" an overwrought voice escapes my mouth as I brush my head, crazed about the sudden appearance of this necromancer and his pets.
What amazed me the most is that all my friends have stepped back instead of fighting these zombies. They were too afraid to approach them and brought shivers in their spines as the undead drew closer to our direction. I can discern their bodies quivering, unable to react even with the slightest touch of my fingers.
I don't exactly understand what was happening, but time is of the essence. If this scene is like the Hollywood shows, then one bite could infect us with its dark magic enchanted by their canines, transferring the curse onto our bodies.
Even though I am a high-ranking priest, I am uncertain if I can uplift that vampiric curse out from an individual.
"Elanor? Princess?" I noticed that most of them stood still, frozen and unable to move their muscles. It was as if that something was restraining them from moving-and I have no clue behind this occurrence.
[Warning! The Lich activated [Eternal Suffering]]
-A Tier 5 Necromancy Spell can summon the dead as spirits, apparition, and bones. They materialised as their prominent fears of the targets, specifically their loved ones.
The familiar azure window appears in front of me and notifies the sorcery used, meant to instil the fear of these people who have someone close to the dead. The bodies will copy their loved one's image and reanimate them as pawns for the Lich's.
According to Elanor, these puppets are weak compared to the wild monsters in the forest. That should have been the case, but the Lich provided these undead beings with abundant arcane, making them close as immortal.
'Then where does this Lich get these resources?' I ponder while looking around, trying to find any source that it had come from.
Alas, it was a fruitless jaunt as I found nothing but the decaying trees enveloping the forest.
I tried hitting one zombified boar and sliced off its head, which should have ended its life. However, to my surprise, the boar desperately crawls towards my way, with its eyes still burning red, glaring at me.
Even the defenceless elves and villagers stood still like statues from afar, as they eventually got themselves gnawed by the living dead. The scene was hideous for me to watch, which almost made my gut explode.
Approximately twenty percent of our soldiers got caught by the undead, and the numbers will continue to rise if there is nothing we could do to stop them. I cannot defend all of them with only a couple of arrows and water spheres in my arsenal.
[Warning! The Lich activated [Eternal Suffering]]
[The spell cannot affect your party members and you.]
"I know!" I involuntarily shouted, anxious about how to put an end to this madness.
Now I have realised Elanor's actions a while back, where he gravelly tries to land a hit at the unknown target. Because of the negative effects of the spell, he could not discharge his arrow. Like the elves and townspeople, the Shade petrifies his body, leaving him vulnerable together with the rest of them.
"If they are in a shock, then there's only one thing that I can do!" I proceeded to my plan and sliced through the skin of Elanor, Natalia, and the two wolves.
I try out my look and eventually shuffle my way closer to them, with two of my hands riling up powerful water spheres that can leave a mark on their body. Of course, I will deliberately stop myself if I draw the line. But, for now, nothing will change if I idle and watch them wake up from their hellish nightmares.
Among the four of them, Elanor was the only one who side-stepped away from the strike. He could move his body for now and aroused himself from the curse engraved by the Lich. Unfortunately, the other three met their fate and took all the damage from my water sphere.
They blast off at the nearby trees, chopping them off like woodcutters that need those lumbers. Natalia barely even hits her head if it was not for Shadow shielding her skull with the use of his [piercing slash] right before it affects her.
"That was dangerous, Lake!" Elanor growls at me with his eyes glaring in my direction. He lifts his arms and conjures his enchanted quiver, only to strike at the sneaking zombie behind me. "But you saved our lives. So, thank you."
"It's kinda nice to hear your gratitude in the middle of everything,"
"I did not know that intense pain could wake you up from curses," He added, reverting to his usual, blank expression.
"Before that, I'll make sure if Natalia and the others are okay," I stated while lunging forward, meeting the puzzled face of the petite elf, together with Imra and Shadow.
"Hey, I saw your paws. Thanks for saving Natalia," I complimented Shadow for briskly thinking of a way to cushion her crash.
"No, it's nothing," The grey wolf answered while gradually standing on his four legs. "Besides, we have better things to worry about, Master."
"That was epic!" Imra has to interrupt our conversation with her ignorant personality as she energetically sprouts from the nest of leaves, gazing back and forth from the Shade and me.
Instead of punishing her for her cluelessness, I hug them tightly, thanking my luck that they were safe amidst the situation. While caught inside our moment, an arrow flies just above my head, shattering the skeleton into pieces.
"What happened here?" After finally regaining her consciousness, Natalia asks me a question, wanting to decipher everything that had happened.
"Long story short, that floating silhouette over there caused these ruckuses, even creating half of the horde's population to piss our pants," I playfully explained while leaving the minor details out from the context.
"And the only way to stop that is?" Natalia appended with an uninterested look on her face.
'She ain't messing around,' I thought, having to witness such a balmy demeanour betwixt of these twisted events.
"I have no idea," I truthfully responded. "If I have one, then we need to punch and cast spells at that phantom until a miracle happens."
We peer at the grim reaper, preparing to launch a wide-scale attack using his scythe. My system even senses its magic circle before the Shade could even chant the spell, revealing the chances of us surviving the attack.
"Imra, tell the rest of the Elves and humans to withdraw to the shelter. Don't forget to add any barriers that can nullify the damage!" I know no shield can protect that massive, dense, arcane assembling at the centre. My strongest spells would not match its magic, even if I could try.
"Wait. Shut up, everyone. I'm trying to think,"
"But I have spoken nothing yet,"
"You're thinking, it's annoying,"
Natalia could not hide her amazement after I stomped on her freedom to speak. However, through the gap, a theory that pops out of my mind could help us in our dire conflict.
"Fire beats water and rocks beats scissors, then-," I snap my fingers after ultimately sorting out my cluttered thoughts.
"Darkness beats light!"